Free Wild Waters by Rob Kidd

eyes, he didn’t notice Benedict slinking away in search of the landward entrance to Samuel’s fort.
    For indeed there was one—a small wooden door in a large stone wall. Samuel’s men used it to get to the jungle when they needed food or building supplies. It was locked, but no one bothered to guard it. What self-respecting pirate would ever attack by land instead of by sea? Not only that, but the terrain for miles around was a tangle of forest and marsh where nobody would want to live, or even travel.
    And yet…emerging from the trees at that very moment were the latest pirates to attempt an attack on King Samuel’s fort. Sarah led them up to the door, and they stood around it for a moment, catching their breath.
    They had spent a very unpleasant night in the rain forest, sleeping in mud and swarmed by mosquitoes. It also didn’t help that Jean kept sitting up suddenly with howls of: “The Day of the Shadow is coming!” or “Don’t take the gold! It’s cursed!” or “She’s going to die!” or “The monkey’s name is Jack!” (This last one caused Barbossa endless amusement, and he filed it away in his memory for future use.)
    Fortunately, when they finally arose to travel on a few hours before dawn, Jean had recovered. He was still woozy and pale, but his eyes were back to normal, and he couldn’t remember a thing about his visions. When Jack tried to ask him some pointed questions, Jean just blinked at him in confusion.
    “That’s all right, then,” Jack had said brightly. “Let’s all just forget it ever happened.” But the coming “Day of the Shadow” threat hung over them all, and for a couple of people in particular, the words that seemed to hint at Carolina’s death were even more terrifying. Jack wanted to forget it more than anyone. If Jean was right, then drinking the last vial of Shadow Gold would mean Carolina’s death. But not drinking it meant Jack would die—Tia Dalma had told him specifically that he needed all seven to be cured. So what was he going to do?
    “This is the door?” Jack said, shoving those thoughts aside. “Doesn’t look like much.”
    “Oh, and I’m sure your fort has the best defenses in the world,” Sarah snapped. She was in a particularly bad mood this morning. Someone had dropped bitter tree bark into her soup the night before and then filled her hair with beetles while she was sleeping. Of course, almost everyone could guess exactly who that someone was, but Marcella protested innocence when Jean asked her about it, and Grandmama fended off any other interrogators by thumping them with her cane.
    The ancient pirate seemed to have taken a liking to Marcella, which didn’t surprise Jack at all. Naturally the two most irritating women he’d ever met would hit it off. They were probably plotting some new way to annoy him at this very moment.
    He narrowed his eyes at them, but Grandmama’s attention was fixed on the door. Her eyes were shining, and her sword was already out of its sheath. She was the only one who’d gotten a good night’s rest, and she was raring to leap into battle.
    Even from the outside, the pirates could hear shouting and crashes inside the fort.
    “The distraction is working,” Jocard said in a low, calm voice. “We must go now.”
    “The door will be locked,” Sarah said. “We’ll have to hack through the wood. I know a few of you brought axes; the rest can use their swords.”
    “Hang on,” Jack said. “Before we blunt our lovely steel on this impediment to our progress, how about we at least try the doorknob?” He sidled around Sarah, who put her hands on her hips and huffed impatiently.
    “Do what you like, but there’s no point!” she said. “I’ve been here before; I know this door is always locked.…” Her voice trailed off as the door swung smoothly open under Jack’s hand.
    “Funny,” Jack said. “Always locked, eh? All evidence to the contrary?”
    “Oh, shut up,” Sarah said, shoving him aside and